keeper of my heart
by professional-geek
Summary: Jane and Maura get some ink...
1. Chapter 1

**Usual disclaimers – I don't own anything, stories, scripts, the show, the characters, the actors…**

**This idea came to me partially because my wife and I are wanton tattooed hussies and partially from a fanfic I read.**

…for you I would tattoo me…

Bright. The harsh glare of the morning – or was it afternoon? – sun stung her eyes. Jane groaned as she realized her head was pounding and her mouth was dry. Hungover. What had happened last night and where was she?

She forced her eyes to open fully. OK. Maura's room. Maura's bed. And she was naked.

The pile of sheets and comforter next to her moaned loudly. "Maura?" Jane rasped. The ME's tousled head emerged from the bedding and squinted at the offending sunlight. "Need water," she muttered moving to sweep aside the sheets. Jane's eyes widened as it became very obvious that Maura was also sans clothing. "Oh!" Maura exclaimed and yanked the sheets back. "Where are my clothes?"

Jane peered over the side of the bed. "All over the floor," she remarked. She suddenly became conscious that her left triceps was throbbing and tight.

Maura fashioned a makeshift toga from one of the sheets and stomped off to the bathroom carefully avoiding stepping on of the clothes that lay strewn about.

At the exact same time Jane turned her arm to see what was causing the pain; a scream came from the bathroom. Maura stuck her head out around the bathroom door looking horrified, "Jane, I have a…"

"…tattoo?" Jane finished for her, "Yeah me too."

_The previous day…_

Friday evening and thank God the week was over. Jane logged out, grabbed her jacket and headed down to the morgue. Frost and Korsak had left for the Robber a few minutes earlier.

"Ready Maura?" Jane asked as she entered, "There's a beer with my name on it waiting at the bar."

Maura had showered and changed out of her scrubs and as usual looked stunning. Jane found herself staring appreciatively – something that had been happening with increasing regularity. If Maura noticed anything she kept it quiet. "Yes Jane, I'm ready," she replied.

The Robber was busy – as was the norm for a Friday night. Jane and Maura arrived and were hailed by Frost – he, Korsak and Frankie had managed to snag a booth. "I am so ready for this beer," Jane sighed as she and Maura sat down, "it's been a hell of a week." "Are you up for a friendly challenge big sis?" Frankie asked pointing to a console that was mounted at the end of the table up against the wall. "Depends on the challenge," Jane replied, "what is that thing?" "Oh Murray has these trivia games installed on a trial basis, you know to see how much money he can make before he commits." Korsak told her, "Frankie said that as long as he had Maura on his team, you'd lose for sure."

"Really Frankie? You have that little faith in my trivia knowledge?" Jane said, trying unsuccessfully to swat her little brother, "OK, I'm in, if only to kick your ass from here to Fenway."

Korsak immediately offered to be the adjudicator claiming he was "too old and too tired" to deal with a hangover. Maura and Frankie were on one team; Jane and Frost on the other.

"The rules are: for each question answered incorrectly the team will take one drink from their beverage of choice. At the end of each round, the losing team by points earned will down a shot." Korsak said. "Everyone clear on that?"

There was a chorus of yeahs and one yes from Maura.

"OK," Korsak said, "Let's get started. Maura and Frankie will go first."

**OK, let me know if I should continue this one…all reviews welcome of course.**


	2. Chapter 2

"I hope you know Frost and I are going to be unbeatable," Jane stated confidently.

Maura just smiled. "I believe my superior trivia knowledge will trump you both."

The men at the table quickly realized that since Jane and Maura were so extremely competitive it was going to be a long night.

The contest began – Maura and Frankie went first, determined by a simple coin toss.

What nationality was Chopin? Polish

Maura smiled again, "if the questions are going to be THIS easy, why Frankie and I will end the night sober!"

Which fast food restaurants were established by Ray Kroc? McDonalds

Jane smiled back just as sweetly, "Pop culture…just wait until you get one of those."

Although the machine was calibrated to choose the questions at random, several in a row were sports related.

"Who knows the answer to rugby and cricket questions anyway?" Frankie grumbled as he downed his shots, "Of course Janie would get the baseball ones."

"Drink up little brother," Jane mocked watching as Maura downed hers with a grimace.

A couple of Geography questions derailed Jane and Frost and they too had to anti-up with more whisky.

Before long both teams were a little worse for wear with the score tied.

"C'mon Barry," Jane said loudly, putting her arm around his shoulders, "I still say we can take 'em. Frankie always was a lightweight when it came to drinking and Dr. Isles although still looking incredibly gorgeous seems a little inebriated to me."

A round of protest came from the other team.

"I am not a lightweight and I'm not drunk," Frankie said slurring his words slightly and trying unsuccessfully to kick his sister under the table.

Maura looked directly at Jane. "I-uh, oh did I ever tell you what beautiful eyes you have? And I'm not feeling the effects of the alcohol. Look." She stood up a little too quickly, wobbled and sat back down with a bump.

Everyone giggled, and Jane wondered if the sudden warmth she was feeling was due to the whisky or the compliment Maura had just paid her.

"Let's do a couple more rounds and see what happens," said Korsak, "It's about time for me to head home."

"Who played Agent Cate Todd in the TV show NCIS?" Jane read from the screen, "Frost, do you know? I've never watched that show."

Frost shook his head, "I only know Mark Harmon plays Gibbs."

The timer ran out. "Another round of shots for Jane and Barry," said Maura, "Ready to give up yet?"

Jane tossed her shot back, "No way, no how," she replied noticing how Maura's eyes sparkled in the light "You're up"

"What cartoon character says "Dagnabit"?" Frankie read.

Jane could not help herself. "I know!" she said smugly.

"Jane, it is not OK to gloat," Maura told her, moving her index finger to and fro.

"Oh yeah, and who's going to stop me?" Jane responded with a smirk.

Maura leaned over the table as far as she could, inadvertently giving Jane a perfect view of her cleavage, and placed a hand over Jane's mouth. "There," she said triumphantly.

"Maura, really?" Jane said in a muffled voice.

Maura removed her hand and sat back down. "I think that was effective, don't you?" she said.

"Yeah but you lost again," Jane replied, "Drink up!"

Frost raised his hand before it was he and Jane's turn again. "I'm going to have to head home," he said, "I can't keep my eyes open."

Frankie smiled "Does that mean Maura and I win?" he asked, "Sure sounds like Frost is forfeiting the game."

Jane glowered and him "No one said anything about forfeiting," she growled, "I'm not giving up. How about you head home too Frankie and leave Maura and I to battle it out?"

For a moment Frankie looked like he was going to argue but in the end he held his hands out and said "Sure sis. Good night Maura, don't let her beat you."

"Good night Frankie," Maura replied, "Don't worry, I have no intentions of losing."

Korsak stood up and let them know he was heading out too. "There's no need for a score keeper now it's just the two of you," he said.

Jane knew she was past the buzzed stage and worryingly close to over friendly "spill your guts" drunk. As the night had gone on, she couldn't help but notice how her gaze gravitated back to Maura time and time again.

"How about we do one more round of questions," she said, "I don't think I need too many more of those shots."

"Agreed," Maura replied. She was feeling a little…what was that word? Tipsy! Yes, that was it. Her equilibrium was obviously off because despite her best intentions, she kept thinking how stunning Jane looked.

"You first," Jane said and pushed the button on the touch screen.

"How many seasons did Hank Aaron blast 50 or more home runs?" Maura read slowly and sighed, "I have no idea."

"Then guess Maura," Jane encouraged.

Maura selected 5 from the options on the screen. INCORRECT was displayed along with the wah-wah-wah ditty. The actual answer was displayed as 0.

"Wow, zero, really?" Jane said. "I never would have guessed that."

Jane's question came up next.

"Which continent has the first recorded tattoo?"

Jane stared at the screen. Like Maura with the baseball question she had no idea. Time for a guess. "I bet you know," she muttered under her breath at Maura before randomly selecting Europe.

"I'm sure that's wron…" the word died in Maura's throat as the trivia machine flashed CORRECT in multiple colours and played it's cute tune.

"Ha!" said Jane jubilantly, "That was a great educated guess. I win!"

"If you guessed it shouldn't count," Maura pouted, "but I suppose, yes, you do win. Congratulations!" She reached her hand across the table to hold Jane's and give it a quick squeeze. The two women's eyes met and held for a few seconds.

"You know many cultures have a history of tattoos," Maura continued as she looked away, "In some it is considered a rite of passage."

"Do you have any?" Jane asked curiously before she could stop herself, "No, wait you don't have to answer that."

Maura smiled and raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"What! You do?" Jane exclaimed, "No way. You're shitting me."

"Actually, you are correct, " she admitted, "I really don't."

"I've thought about it before," Jane said, slowly peeling the label from her bottle of beer, "but I always chicken out. Ma would have a fit cause you know "nice girls" don't have ink."

"I think tattoos are sexy," Maura stated, realizing too late that her internal filter was being affected by the alcohol consumption, "tracing the image with a fingertip would be quite…erotic, don't you agree?"

Jane's mouth opened and closed a few times before she managed "I can't say I've ever imagined that." Until now and it's a little disconcerting that you were the one with the tattoo I was tracing, she thought.

"We should get tattoos," Maura said excitedly, "N..not that I think of you that way….I think it would be fun to go together!"

"You mean go NOW?" Jane asked, "I really think we should wait until we're sober before we make that decision."

Maura looked disappointed. "I suppose that is the right course of action," she replied.

There was silence.

Jane yawned. "I think it's time to head home."

Maura realized that she didn't want the evening to end but short of inviting Jane home with her she had no ideas except to suggest another round of drinks.

"One more for the road?" she asked hopefully.


	3. Chapter 3

**SO SO sorry for the delay in updating this one. I thought this would be the final chapter but as you can see the muse (plus Jane and Maura) had other ideas…**

_Back at Maura's house_

Maura and Jane sat on the bed. Maura was somewhat over her initial shock of seeing the tattoo on her arm and true to her nature had Googled tattoo care and insisted they both wash them with soap and rub unscented lotion on them.

"We can shower but no baths for 2-3 weeks," she told Jane.

Jane finished her application of lotion and grimaced a little. "It stings," she said. "Yes, that is normal and later as your skin begins to heal it will itch too," Maura responded.

"Great," Jane grumbled. "Do you have any idea how we ended up with these? I remember us playing that trivia game and getting drunk.."

"Jane we were not drunk," Maura interrupted.

"..getting drunk and then everything after that is a lot fuzzy." Jane finished.

"I have to admit I am in the same situation as you," Maura said slowly, "My memory is definitely cloudy for that period of time."

Jane sighed. She hadn't said anything to her friend yet but she was p-r-e-t-t-y sure something more than sleeping had occurred in Maura's bed. The room itself was back to a semblance of normal – Maura had picked up all the clothes from the floor and straightened up the bed. She looked at Maura as she too finished up with the lotion and was caught by an overwhelming surge of desire, so strong it felt like a physical blow to her stomach. A few memories surfaced as if they had been jolted loose – she and Maura walking into a tattoo parlor and the two of them kissing passionately outside the bedroom.

"I think we went to a tattoo parlor called 'The Black Cat'", Jane said, carefully pushing the other images to the back of her mind. She knew there was an attraction on her part toward Maura but she had never planned on acting on it, never mind a night of drunken debauchery.

Maura immediately searched on her Smartphone and triumphantly showed the results to Jane. "You may be correct," she said, "There is a tattoo parlor of that name in Boston."

"Let's go," Jane said getting up from the bed.

"Where are we going?" Maura asked heading to her closet to get a pair of shoes.

"To The Black Cat of course," Jane said, "Aren't you interested in where we got these tattoos? Or if there is any meaning behind them? I know you HAVE to be curious about that."

"Oh. Right," said Maura, "Yes, I am very interested to know the history behind this symbol."

The two women walked outside and realized they had no transportation. "Our cars are still at the Robber," Jane said, "That makes sense; I guess we took a cab to the tattoo place."

A cab ride to the Robber later, Maura and Jane were on their way to the Black Cat.

_Back at the Robber_

Maura giggled, "No, no, I don't believe Frankie did that." Jane leaned over and pointed her finger at Maura. "Yup, I am not lying to you. It's the God's honest truth. Aaaaaand Ma has a photo somewhere."

Both women dissolved into uncontrollable giggles. The thought of a teenage Frankie Rizzoli wearing his sister's panties was suddenly extremely hilarious. Every time one of them would begin to calm down they would look at each other and it would start all over again.

Finally with much gasping for air and wiping of eyes they were able to stop. That last round of drinks had proved to be the tipping point – Jane and Maura were most definitely drunk.

"I need another beer," Jane announced, "Laughing is thirsty work. D'ya wan' one?" Maura nodded.

"'k be right back," Jane responded and took off for the bar.

Maura watched her friend stride to the bar, a little unsteadily it was true, but still with that powerful animal presence she had and those pants certainly accentuated her gluteus maximus.

As Jane returned to the booth Maura blatantly stared at her. With her inhibitions gone she was able to give in to feelings deemed inappropriate for mere friendship. Maura's eyes ran down the length of Jane enjoying what she had always perceived to be forbidden fruit.

Jane slid back into the booth beside Maura with their drinks and what appeared to be a flyer. "Look at this Maura," she said, "It's a flyer for a local tattoo parlor. The bartender says they do excellent line work and she recommends them. I thought since you wanted to get a tattoo you might want to check it out."

"The Black Cat," Maura read from the flyer. "The ink you want at reasonable prices. Jane, they are open right now! Can we take a look? Please?"

Jane put down her beer. "Maura, we already discussed this. No tattoos while drunk."

"I know, I want to look through their flash," Maura responded. "Please Jane?"

Jane sighed. She never could resist a plea from the medical examiner. "Alright then. I'll call a cab; we'll finish our drinks and head over. But NO tattoos."

Maura clapped her hands and smiled. "Thank you Jane." Still caught up in the excitement of the moment she leaned in and gave Jane a kiss on her cheek.

_In the car headed to The Black Cat (the day after)_

Behind the wheel of the Prius Maura nervously glanced at her friend as they drove silently towards The Black Cat. While she had no real recollection of the previous night beyond drinking at the Robber she knew from tidying up the bed linens that more than just sleeping had transpired in her bed. Maura was no stranger to one night stands – sex after all was a human imperative – but with Jane? There was no denying that she did have feelings for her friend – quite strong feelings in actuality – but their friendship had prevented her from ever broaching the subject with Jane. Now it would appear that Jane also had similar…tendencies. "Or I took advantage of her…" Maura thought to herself with a shiver of distaste.

Before long they arrived at the tattoo parlor. There was a small if difficult to negotiate parking lot that was all but empty.

"I suppose it's a little early for getting a tattoo," Jane remarked as the women exited the car.

A small bell jingled as Jane opened the door to the establishment. The walls were covered in tattoo artwork (or flash) and in one corner several black binders were stacked on a makeshift bookshelf. The young man sitting behind the desk barely looked up but something about Jane's demeanor must have screamed cop and he quickly scrambled to attention and ran a hand nervously through his blue coloured hair.

Jane immediately took charge. "My…uh…friend and I got tattooed here last night and we'd like to talk to the person who did them."

The man visibly relaxed, realizing this was not an official police visit. "You don't remember who it was?" he asked, "Did you have an appointment?"

Jane sighed. "No, we don't remember and we didn't have an appointment." She gave the man her best stare in an attempt to prevent any further awkward questions.

"Well, umm, can you let me see your tattoo?" he asked. "Everyone has a specialty here so I might be able to tell from your ink."

Jane removed her jacket and carefully rolled up her left sleeve.

"Oh wow, that's an awesome tat," he said, "Vicky would have done that. She's in the back finishing up with a customer. I'll let her know you want to talk to her."

He walked past Jane and Maura and disappeared down a narrow corridor that presumably led to each artist's workstation.

"Vicky?" Maura said trying to see if saying the name would trigger any memories, "I'm afraid that name isn't helping me remember anything."

"Me either," Jane agreed.

The two women sat down on the small bench and waited. In a couple of minutes the young man returned. "Vicky will be out soon," he said, "she just needs to finish cleaning up her workstation and get the needles into the autoclave."

A few minutes later Vicky and her customer walked into the room. "Hey, hey," she said smiling, "it's my lovebirds from last night! Give me a second to deal with this and I'll be right with you."

Maura and Jane looked at each other. "Lovebirds? Really?" Jane said. Maura merely shrugged her shoulders.

As the customer left the establishment, Vicky came over, sat down between Jane and Maura – wriggling her butt to make a space – and put her arms around each of their shoulders. As she pulled them in close to her she said "Jane and Maura, what brings y'all back here today?"

Jane stared at her in shock. She did not remember Vicky at all. She was tall and slim with slightly olive skin. Her jet black hair was accentuated by a silver streak that ran from her natural part to her forehead. Her skin, at least the areas that were visible were tattooed heavily with a mixture of styles.

Vicky looked at both of them in turn. "Aaahhh," she said finally, "You don't remember being here last night, do you?"


	4. Chapter 4

**Reviewers – I thank you for your kind words and patience. **

_In the cab headed to The Black Cat_

"Ok ladies, where to?" asked the cab driver. He was an older man wearing a flat cap that had seen better days. The cab was well-worn but clean and smelled strongly of Magic Tree air freshener.

"Take us to the Black Cat please," Maura announced from the back seat and she struggled to fasten her seatbelt.

"The tattoo joint?" the cabbie responded with a touch of disbelief in his voice.

"Yeah, you got a problem with that?" Jane asked. She had locked her own seatbelt and was now leaning over Maura in an attempt to assist her friend. Maura smiled happily as she enjoyed the length of Jane pressed up against her and tried to "help".

"Maura, can you..just..hands off and let me do it," she said finally. The click of the seatbelt connecting signaled Jane's success.

"No, uh, I have no problem," the driver replied, trying to keep the smirk off his face and he put the car into drive.

"Maura, why did you pick the middle seat?" Jane grumbled as the cab hit a pothole and crushed her up against her friend.

"I wanted to be close to you Jane," Maura responded, "In fact I think I'm going to kiss you."

"Maura. Maura!" Jane's voice cut through the daydream, "We're here. Were you sleeping?"

"No, I was just..resting my eyes," the ME said, wishing that she really was kissing her friend.

Jane gave Maura her hand as they exited the cab and Maura did not relinquish it even after they were both on the sidewalk. Jane looked down at the fingers intertwined with hers and then back up at Maura. She smiled and thought for the umpteenth time how radiant she looked. If only they could be more than friends.

"Are you ready to go in?" Maura asked noticing the faraway look in Jane's eyes.

"What? Oh yeah, let's check it out," Jane replied.

_Inside the Black Cat_

Maura and Jane walked inside the Black Cat. It was dimly lit with some music playing faintly but loud enough for the bass line and drums to lend a syncopated beat to the ambiance. A woman behind the counter saw them and looked up. The two friends were still holding hands; a gesture so desired by both that it had been forgotten.

"Hello ladies," the woman greeted them, "I'm Vicky. We don't get many lesbian couples in here – how long have y'all been together?"

Jane and Maura looked at each other and then back at Vicky. "We're not a couple," Jane said quickly now realizing she was still holding Maura's hand, "We're BFFs." She glanced at Maura again as she untangled their fingers and thought she saw a flicker of disappointment on her face.

"Really?" Vicky responded smiling knowingly, "Well, what can I help you with tonight?"

"I'd like to look through your flash," Maura requested, "I find tattoos to be fascinating. Of course I won't be getting one right now – I might have had a little too much to drink!"

Vicky laughed and she also caught the glance Maura had given Jane during her dialogue as if requesting and receiving approval. "Not together my ass," she thought to herself as she brought over the binders she thought might interest them.

"This binder has some Celtic artwork, and this one has more traditional tattoos. Let me know if you want to look at any other styles."

Maura smiled her thanks and began looking through the Celtic binder. In spite of herself, Jane sat closely beside her friend and watched as she turned the pages. She remembered what Maura had said about the sensuality of tattoos and felt the ache of desire begin to burn inside.

"Oh I love this one," Maura said pointing to a Celtic knot on the page, "Vicky, what does this represent?" Jane stared at the lines on the drawing and imagined her finger tracing around the loops endlessly on Maura's skin.

Vicky sauntered over and looked at the image Maura was pointing too. "Oh that's one of my favorites. It is an Eternity Knot and represents eternal beauty and love everlasting." She looked pointedly at each woman in turn as she spoke.

Vicky's intimation was lost on Jane but not on the ME. Maura blushed as she captured Jane's eyes. Eternal beauty described her perfectly and love everlasting was what she hoped..wished…longed for. "What do you think Jane?" she asked softly trying to convey all the love she had for her friend in her gaze.

Jane cleared her throat. Maura's intensity was melting her – those honey amber eyes pleading, searching, loving. "I-uh, I think it suits you," she replied, "the green and grey will compliment your skin and I love the tie in to your heritage. You will always be eternally beautiful to me." The last sentence was spoken before Jane could censor herself and the words hung in the air between them.

"I will?" Maura asked, hardly able to believe what she had just heard. Jane nodded, placed her hand on Maura's and gave it a little squeeze. "You're not freaking out, so I'll take that as a good sign," she joked nervously.

Maura tilted her head before continuing, "Jane, I'm not freaking out because I have imagined this moment countless times. I love you. "

She placed a soft chaste kiss on Jane's lips, watching as the detective's eyes widened. The kiss was more intoxicating to the ME than all the alcohol she had consumed that evening.

As the kiss ended, Maura studied Jane for a reaction. She looked shell-shocked but her expression quickly changed into a shy smile.

"Maura, I, you, we…," she stammered finding it difficult to articulate, "I love you too." She pulled Maura into an embrace simply wanting to feel closer to her.

"I want to hold on to you and never let go," Jane said, her voice somewhat muffled, "This is home. You are home to me."

There was a muted "Yay" from the other side of the room and as the two separated they saw Vicky standing with her arms up in the air.

"I knew you guys were more than friends when you walked in here," she said smiling.

Maura turned to Jane. "I want to get this tattoo tonight," she said firmly, "Vicky, would that be all right with you?"

Vicky nodded. "Normally I'd say no – we don't usually ink people under the influence but this seems like a pretty special occasion to me. What about you Jane?"

Jane blinked. "Oh, I wasn't planning on getting a tattoo but if Maura's going to get one…well, I can't have her, umm.."

"Out butching you?" Vicky finished, trying to be helpful.

"Really?" Jane replied, "Well, I suppose that's as good a term as any." She shot a sly glance at Maura who merely rolled her eyes.

"Y'all are just too cute," Vicky exclaimed, "How about I get the trace set up while you pick out the one you want?" She returned to the counter, pulled out some tracing paper and began to draw.

Jane resumed searching through the book while Maura reached out for her other hand and linked their fingers.

"I love your hands you know," Maura murmured as she gently rubbed Jane's scar with her thumb, "So strong and yet…so gentle."

Jane smiled, "Keep that up Maura and we'll be celebrating something else at this tattoo parlor. Now help me find a tattoo please."

Maura turned her attention to the open page. "I rather like that one," she said, indicating a Celtic band. Jane nodded, "I like that one too."

Vicky was already on her way over having completed the trace of Maura's tattoo when Jane asked her about the Celtic band they had picked out.

"Another great choice," she said, "This one is a guardian band – prefect for those who are protectors. Maura, are you ready to have this done?"

Vicky led the two women to her workstation where the ink and tattoo gun were set up. She placed the tracing paper on Maura's right biceps so the image would imprint on her skin. "There," she said, "Does that look good to you?"

Maura checked out the image in the mirror. "Yes, I like that," she replied.

Vicky dipped the needles of her tattoo gun into the black ink. "You need to sit very still," she told Maura, "it's going to hurt some and you're going to bleed."

Maura nodded and steeled herself. The needles hit her pale skin and began to trace the outline of the Celtic knot. She winced a little and grabbed Jane's hand for support.

"Are you OK babe?" Jane asked. Maura smiled at the endearment. "Yes. It stings and burns a little but nothing too bad."

Before too long Vicky had completed the outline and started on the fill. Every once in a while she used a wet soapy paper towel to wipe the excess ink and blood from Maura's arm.

Finally it was complete. "Wow, that looks amazing," Maura said admiring the tattoo, "Thanks Vicky!"

Now it was Jane's turn. "I'm a little nervous," she admitted as she sat down, "You know Ma is going to kill me."

Maura leaned in close so only Jane could hear. "Never mind about Angela," she whispered, "Just keep in mind what I said before about tattoos."

Jane blushed.

In a matter of an hour or so, Vicky had completed the guardian band tattoo on Jane's left arm.

"OK ladies, y'all are my last tats of the night. How about we celebrate with some malt whisky?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Your reviews are the best! This is the fifth and final chapter. Thanks again!**

_The Black Cat (current day)_

Vicky looked at Maura and Jane in turn with sympathy etched on her face. "You really don't remember anything do you?" she sighed, "We drank, well you two drank, several glasses of whisky before I called you a cab and you headed home. It was quite a celebration."

Jane couldn't look at Maura. She just could not. She had listened to Vicky's narration of the night before with growing elation and discomfort. What if..what if it had only been the alcohol talking? What if Maura was already regretting her confession of love and whatever had happened in her bed? Her mind ran off on a tangent imagining the awkwardness of unrequited love and a working situation where they would see each other every day.

Vicky stood up. "I'll be right over here if y'all need me," she said and walked back over to the counter where she took out a drawing pad and began to doodle.

Maura scooted closer to Jane until their legs were touching. She placed one hand on Jane's thigh. "Jane are you all right?" she asked with a very slight waver in her voice.

"I don't know," came the quiet response as Jane kept her gaze focused on her linked hands, her thumbs tumbling over each other forwards and backwards nervously. Finally she raised her head and turned to look at Maura.

The glisten of unshed tears in Maura's eyes was evident. Vicky's revelations had driven home how much she truly loved Jane and the knowledge that their professions of love (and other not quite as innocent actions) had taken place while inebriated was somewhat upsetting. Jane's obvious distress was feeding into her vulnerability in the worst possible way.

"You're not going to cry, are you?" Jane asked, concern plastered all over her face, "Everything will be fine. We'll figure something out," she continued.

Before Maura could respond, there was a noise over by the counter. Vicky was still immersed in her drawing but the blue-haired guy who had greeted them was quite noticeably eavesdropping on to their conversation.

Jane sighed heavily. "Let's continue this discussion back at your place," she said, "away from prying…ears."

As the women made their way to the door, waving to Vicky as they did so, Jane suddenly stopped. "You head to the car," she said, "I have a quick question for Vicky." In a few minutes they were in the car and on the way back to Maura's house.

_Enroute to Maura's House_

At the first red light Maura turned to Jane "I wasn't going to cry," she began. Jane looked at her with the patented Jane Rizzoli face of disbelief. "Well, perhaps I was," Maura said a little defensively, "I'm sure you think last night was a huge error of judgment and by that I am referring to the declarations of love, not the tattoos although you may consider that to be a blunder too."

The hurt tone in Maura's voice was palpable. Jane sighed again. "Maura, this is difficult for me. Telling someone you love them and not being able to remember, that's..that's not how I imagined…I mean, shit I don't know. I do know one thing. If I told you I loved you, drunk or sober I meant it." Her voice dropped to a nervous whisper while speaking the last sentence.

Maura's face broke into a small, hopeful smile. Before either could say another word, the car behind them honked long and loud. The light had changed to green and neither of them had noticed. "I suggest we wait until we're out of the car before we continue," Maura said. Jane nodded.

The next few minutes played out in silence. Neither woman wanted to engage in small talk with so many thoughts weighing on their minds. As Maura pulled into her driveway, Jane began twiddling her thumbs again anticipating and dreading the conversation to come.

Once inside, Jane strode to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water. As tempting as the hair of the dog was she wanted a clear head while talking to Maura. "Do you want one?" she asked her friend. Maura nodded. The two stood by the granite countertop sipping from their glasses and as the uncomfortable silence stretched out Maura set hers down and began to talk.

"I have to agree with you that alcohol-fueled avowals of love are not exactly the way most people envisage that special moment. However, if it precipitated me coming to realize my real feelings for you then I believe that in this instance it was a good thing. I am in love with you Jane. It was true last night and it's still true today."

She looked expectantly at Jane. The detective had kept her gaze steady on Maura the entire time she was talking and held Maura's eyes for a few seconds more before looking away.

"I think you know how I feel, " she began slowly, "I can't deny my heart and desires any longer but.."

"Does there have to be a but?" Maura asked, interrupting with a small look of annoyance.

"I wish it could be that simple," Jane sighed, "you know we didn't…just sleep in your bed last night? I..we.."

"Had sex? " Maura responded, "i..knew that, yes. I wasn't sure if you did – silly really given what a great detective you are."

"That doesn't bother you?" Jane asked, "God, I want so badly to remember." She walked around the counter until she was standing by Maura. The pent up hunger she had tried so hard to control since awaking naked in bed was clamoring to be released. She reached out and began trailing her finger tips up and down Maura's bare arm.

"Of course I want to remember," Maura replied, "given the response your touch is eliciting in me I can only imagine how incredible last night was." She looked into Jane's soft brown eyes. "We can always make new memories," she said, "if that's what you want."

Jane groaned. "If that's what I want? My brain might not recall what happened in your bed but my body definitely does."

Maura smiled, her eyes taking in Jane's dilated pupils and the pulse points in her neck. "Is that a proposition?" she asked.

"W-what?" Jane answered, licking her lips nervously.

"You heard me, " Maura continued, stepping closer to Jane. Jane backed away and Maura followed until Jane was up against the wall.

Maura placed one hand on the wall on either side of Jane. The sexual tension between the two was practically a living, breathing entity.

"Do you want this Jane?" she said, "I see every indication that you do on a physical level but I want to hear you say it."

As Jane looked at Maura in her obvious flushed cheeked arousal an image from the night before surfaced – one with Maura's head between her legs. They had already been intimate. In that moment Jane realized that all the repercussions from family, friends and work were worth it. Maura was undeniably worth it.

"Yes, I want this," she replied softly. Maura leaned in and kissed her. The contact was soft and electric causing heat in all the right places. Neither made any attempt to deepen the embrace, merely enjoying the moment as if it were the first time. As Maura pulled away, Jane touched her fingers to her lips. "Wow, that was…I've never…well, I guess I did last night." She moved away from the wall and caressed Maura's cheek with her left hand. "I'm not entirely sure how I got so lucky. A working-class Italian Boston cop and.."

"..and the woman who loves her." Maura interrupted, "We're _both_ lucky Jane."

Jane smiled. "Ready to make those memories over again?" she asked taking Maura's hand, "I can't wait until your tattoo is healed enough to trace with my fingers."

The two women walked into Maura's bedroom and closed the door.

…here is my love and anger, these are my gods, these are my scars. Here is my love and anger, my arms are burning but they're open wide…


End file.
